Twitter
Advertisement

Sponsorship crunch augurs dull Navratri in Ahmedabad

With sponsors tightening their purse strings, number of garba venues will fall drastically this year in the city.

Latest News
article-main
FacebookTwitterWhatsappLinkedin

Every year, during Navratri, there are more than 50 garba venues between Gandhinagar and Sarkhej (in Ahmedabad) but this year things are somewhat dull. Lack of sponsorship has brought down the number of garba venues along the same highway to just 30 this year.

Even the orchestras are having a hard time. As there are fewer party plot events this year, they have signed up to perform at societies and pols during Navratri.

Instead of planning events separately, many garba organisers have teamed up for the event this Navratri. They blame the lack of funds on telecom, insurance and real estate companies who are not sponsoring events this year.

Companies from these sectors are normally the big sponsors but this year they are reluctant loosen their purse strings.

Devang Patel, the famous singer, had organised garba for nine nights last year at AC Hall near Gujarat University. But he is not interested in doing a repeat this year.

“I have been singing at garba nights in Gujarat for the last 20 years but I have never seen what is known as ‘teji’ (bullishness) among organizers for Navratri. In Ahmedabad, organisers are dependent on sponsorship as earnings from ticket sales are low. This is why organizers find it difficult to break even,” said Patel.

Moreover, compared to last year, organising garba at the AC Hall has become a more expensive affair. “There are two reasons for this — change in Gujarat University management and rise in input costs. I am not going to organise garba only for two days at another venue,” said Patel.

Similarly, Venus Ground event organizers near Shivranjani crossroads will be holding an exhibition this year and not garba. SOI Events also feel that organising Navratri garba in Ahmedabad is not feasible in the current circumstances.

Venus Ground organisers, who have expertise in holding exhibitions, had tried their hand at organising garba last year. But this year, they have little enthusiasm for the event. “We have decided not to organise garba. An exhibition is more feasible and it generates revenue,” said Mayur Kanabar of Venus Ground.

Himanshu Shah of SOI Event Management said they had decided not to organise Navratri events this year as well. “In Vadodara and Surat, organizers don’t depend on sponsors as most of the revenue comes from ticket sales. In Ahmedabad, unfortunately, ticket sales yield less than 10% of the revenue. For this reason, if organizers fail to get sponsors, they incur losses,” Shah said.

True Events, which is known for organsing garba on all the nine nights of the festival, has opted this year for only the last two days of Navratri. “Like last year, the telecom companies are the spoilsport. Garbas are likely to be a low key affair this year because of lack of sponsorship. Clubs are too expensive for organizers while it is difficult to break even on party plots,” said director of True Events, Jaydeep Mehta.

Mehta further said that garbas used to be organised at 50 or more venues between Gandhinagar and Sarkhej. “But this year, there will be no more than 30 venues. Only those people are organizing whose purpose is not making money. These organizers have been able to get sponsorship because of their personal ties with jewellery stores or a real estate firms,” Mehta said.

Anand Doshi of Shree Sharda Communications has been organizing garba on SG Highway for the past eight years. “This year I am doing it for the ninth year. It required a lot of effort but I have somehow managed to get funds for the event from other industries,” said Doshi.

Find your daily dose of news & explainers in your WhatsApp. Stay updated, Stay informed-  Follow DNA on WhatsApp.
Advertisement

Live tv

Advertisement
Advertisement